


Day 1: Serendipity

by Fanbyhotmess



Series: Zutara Week 2012 [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff, Zutara Week 2012, past Mai/zuko, past kataang
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-13
Updated: 2016-01-13
Packaged: 2018-05-13 13:07:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5709316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fanbyhotmess/pseuds/Fanbyhotmess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The 100 year war is finally over and a celebration is long over due. Zuko thinks about all he has been through and reevaluates who he really loves. Aang has proposed to Katara and told her its her duty to help him repopulate the air nomad race, but she finds she doesn't love Aang as she once did and that she doesn't want to be tied down. Mai is already planning her and Zuzu's wedding, but Zuko finds he doesn't love her anymore and reflects on who he truly loves.<br/>A small Zutara one-shot alternate universe-canon divergence.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Day 1: Serendipity

As Zuko looked out into the sea of smiling faces and cheering voices, he couldn’t help but smile. The 100 year war was officially over, thanks to the avatar and his little band of friends. And now they could create an era of peace. He's going to need all of their help to work out the kinks, especially hers. His eyes stop on her feminine frame. She’s wearing her water tribe garb that she had fought in. That was several days ago, way before any guests had arrived; they hadn’t even won the war yet. And if it wasn't for her, the war would have mostly likely lasted longer. He had insisted that she change her attire, he even had a selection of dresses shipped in for her. Even so she replied in a firm and precise manner.

“I thank you kindly for this most gracious offer, but I would rather wear my 'war garb' every day for the rest of my life, then wear a pompous dress. It would be disgraceful if I showed up in anything but the very clothing I battled in. Which might I remind you helped end this war".

She had said it with such fierceness and yet was as calm as a flower. It amazed him as he locked eyes with her now, to see how much she had grown. She was no longer that helpless little waterbender he had captured a long time ago; she was a master waterbender, trusty warrior and a faithful friend. She was so honorable that she had refused medical help until she had seen him safely taken care of after their battle with Azula.

After the grand ceremony Zuko invited all the guests to an extravagant reception. He had several foreign cuisines shipped over from every nation for the occasion. They ranged from Sea Prune soup, exotic teas, to Koi fish and Sea Comquads. He steered clear of the sea prunes with a little tip from Aang. What intrigued him more over was the attire of the swamp benders; their skimpy leaves barely fit them. He pinched the bridge of his nose in distain. Zuko turned his attention back to his date, Mai who had been tapping on his shoulder impatiently.

"Zuko, come now you have several guests to attend to; you'll have time for food later." Mai said taking the plate from him and placing it on a waiters golden tray that was nearby.

He let out a small grumble of complaint and accepted that it wasn't going to change anything. He smoothened out his face and turned towards the incoming guests. After what seemed like a good few hours of shaking hands and boring conversation, a trumpet could be heard above the small roar.

"Announcing the arrival of our guest of honor, Avatar Aang and his date Miss Katara" A simple dressed butler announced.

A collection of gasps, murmurs and sighs filled the room as all eyes fixed on the couple. Aang was covered head to toe in his air temple ceremony garb, but many of the murmurs were for the chocolate beauty striding beside him. She was wearing a sleeveless, midnight blue dress with a long, white, short sleeved tunic and white stilettos. Her chocolate locks were pulled up into a braided bun; the remaining braid fell down her back. And the piece de resistance was the beautifully ordinate necklace around her neck, the sapphires and diamonds made her cerulean eyes pop. Applause erupted from the hushed crowd and many rushed up to the couple begging for details. Zuko just stood there flabbergasted, he had never seen her so, well, dressed up. He had to say, he preferred her war garb, this look made her look so much older. Eventually the crowd and noise cooled down and the couple made their way over to Mai and Zuko who were discussing their wedding plans. Much of which, Zuko paid little to no attention to, he hadn’t even proposed yet and she was already making plans. And besides his thoughts were solely on her, the real girl of his dreams, Katara. He loved the way she held such pride and honor above all else, it was so remarkable. She walked and talked with such purpose and poise. And her beauty was definitely unmatched.

Zuko walked up to Katara, bowed and took her hand and kissed it gently. "Miss Katara, it is a pleasure to have your company this evening."

"Oh Zuko, enough with the theatrics, we're closer than that." Katara said pulling Zuko into a tight hug. All the warmth he had been missing instantly flooded him.

As Katara hugged him, she couldn't help but smile, he was so warm and comfortable. She fit nicely next to him. She eventually pulled away to avoid suspicion. When she pulled away though, he felt all cold and frowned in spite of it. She would never be his, no matter how much he wished she would be.

"And Aang, my good friend, how are you doing?" Zuko said shaking his friend’s hand.

"Alive and very relieved. I never thought I would see this day, let alone take part in its preparation." Aang said a smile rising on his lips. "I hope you have a plan to make peace, cause I sure as heck don't." he added with a chuckle.

"Oh well yes, but this is party after all. Let us celebrate, and then we can discuss peace later. Katara I had the Sea prunes you asked for shipped in and the fruit pies were made as well Aang." Zuko finished with a bow. "I hope you enjoy."

"Thank you very much" they both said and walked towards the long table of food.

Zuko and Mai eventually made their way over to the food table. The night was filled with much dancing, eating and chatting. Zuko shook so many hands that by the end of it, he could barely feel his fingers. 

*******************************************

Mai left the party soon after they ate; she was celebrating with family members for a few days. Eventually all the guests scattered back to their given quarters, ships or other parts of the palace grounds. As Zuko walked back to his quarters, his mind was filled with thoughts of her. Along the way he spotted his favorite spot on the grounds, the small pond and tall Oak were still there. He slid down the trunk of the tree, staring out onto the glistening waters. He grabbed up a small stone and skipped it across the small surface. He heard a small rustle, and then she emerged from the shadows.

"I couldn't sleep. Mind if I join you?” She said taking a step forward.

"Katara, Oh uh yeah of course." He said shifting a bit over, even though there clearly enough room. He just felt too awkward in the moment, and she might have not seen that there was room. Either way he didn't want her to think badly of him.

"Couldn't sleep either?" She said taking a seat next to him.

"Oh uh no, I was uh just passing by and I couldn't help by stop by. My mother and I use to spend summers just sitting here. She helped me through so much. And I miss her so much. And once all this peace business ends, I'm going to go and find her. My father banished her when I was young." He said gripping his hand into a fist.

"Oh well, I help in any way I can." Katara said placing a hand on his hardened hand. Zuko could not help but stare at her hand for the longest time. "Help with the rebuilding of course." she sighed, removing her hand.

Zuko quickly averted his eyes back to the water, trying to act uninterested. By this time the moon had raised high in the sky and many stars were shining brightly. He looked over at her highlighted face, and found he could not look away. Her beauty was outstanding in normal light, but the moonlight gave her this sort of glow, that he couldn't help but stare. She looked over at him, a meek smile rising on her lips. He managed a meek smile back, and received a blush in return. He suddenly felt a sort of warm feeling spread all over his body, warmth only she could bring. It was a warm and loving feeling, and left him craving more. He felt himself blush and quickly looked away. She chuckled lightly at his gesture.

She felt her mind wander and she soon found herself thinking about Zuko in a peculiar way. She quickly tried to brush these feelings off; she just couldn't afford to think of him in  
this way, not with Aang and his stupid proposal. She turned him down with the excuse that she was too young and it was too hectic to think about it clearly now. She knew the real reason was that she didn't love him the way she used. He was more of a brother to her. Besides she was in love with someone else. Someone she respected very highly, someone very honorable. And a man she never thought she would forgive. As she looked over at him, she couldn't help but smile. He was so brave and intelligent. Even though he had a very scared childhood, he was the most honorable and trustworthy man she knew. And as she looked at him now, she realized there was no one she'd rather be would rather be with than him. Her happiness soon faded as she remembered Aangs words, "You are the only one I’ve ever loved and it’s your duty to help me repopulate the Air Nomad race…‟! 

As she thought about it more and more, she hated the idea that she was only useful for reproduction, she wanted to be a part of the rebuilding and wanted to be honored for her efforts as a warrior not a mother. She felt like she had no choice but to help Aang, who else would? All these negative thoughts soon upset her so much that she began to cry. She had no control over the tears as they fell.

As Zuko sat there by his small childhood place with her, he felt at peace. If only he had the courage to ask her to go out with him. One date is all he needed, then he’d let her go off with the avatar. He needed to feel like she loved him back, even for just a moment. But he could never be so bold and he was always bad with words around her, and often found himself very flustered. Then all of a sudden he heard crying, at first he thought it was the sound of the fountain water in the pond, but then he realized it was crying. He looked around him, and found that it was she who was crying, the woman who had just been thinking about. What could’ve possibly happened to have upset her like this? He quickly wrapped his arms around her, enveloping her in his warmth.

“Katara, what’s the matter? What happened?” He pleaded as he stroked her soft locks.

“It’s-just --I a-ham so scarred. Aang pro-proposed to me and and I-turned him-im down--because I didn’t wa-hant to just be a mother to his race, I want to—be a warrior.” She stumbled out between sobs.

He frowned as he watched her burst out fit after fit of sobbing. Why would she think she’d just be mother? And to Aangs race? What? That didn’t ma-? Oh of course, if she married the avatar she’d probably have to pop out a couple of air nomads. But why would she think anyone would not honor her because of that? He knew she wanted to be a free warrior and all, but just because she was a mother to a race, didn’t make her any less of a warrior.

“Katara, calm down it’s okay. Just because you’d be a mother, doesn’t mean you wouldn’t be any less of a warrior.--I mean I don’t know if anyone has told you this lately, but you were amazing when you fought against Azula; and when you healed me. Katara you are an amazing Master Waterbender and you will not be forgotten”.  
Katara sniffled a bit and looked up at him through wet eyelashes, “Really you mean that?”

“Of course I do”, he said pulling her into a big hug, “Now stop crying, that’s not going to solve anything. You’re tougher than this anyway.” Zuko said wiping her tears with his fingers and handing her a handkerchief from his cloak.

She managed a small smile and a huff of laughter as she dried up her tears and blew her nose into the soft cloth. “Thanks, that means a lot coming from you”, she said smiling again and handing him the wet hanky.

He grabbed it and neatly folded it, placing it in his cloaks. He smiled at her words; he was glad that he meant a lot to her. She meant a lot to him. He still kept his arms around her, pulling her closer to him. They laid there for a few more minutes before Katara suddenly shifted upright.

“What’s matter?” Zuko asked placing a hand on her shoulder.

Katara turned her face way from his, so he would not see her blush, but the happiness faded once more. “It’s just, *sigh* I don’t really love Aang anymore. That’s the real reason why I said no to him, but I lied because I didn’t want to hurt his feelings.” She said with a huff.

“Oh, well that’s a problem I suppose.” Zuko said removing his hand from her shoulder. He masked his face to look like he was concerned, but inside he was exploding with excitement. If she didn’t love Aang maybe he could have her after all. He’d let her decide though and be her friend first. He didn’t want to hurt her or rush her in anyway.

“Well it’s really more that I like someone else more than him, but I just don’t know how to tell them.” Katara said, turning towards Zuko.

 

“Oh and who might that be?” Zuko said with a grin. Inside he was secretly praying it’d be him.

“It’s- um you, Zuko. I love you.” Katara said smiling.

Zuko sighed, “Oh you-wait you love me?” Zuko said his face lighting up. He prayed to Agni that this wasn’t some joke.

“Yea, I’ve had a thing for you ever since we met. That whole bad boy, scarred prince thing was so intriguing. I mean back then I thought it was awful, but now I like it. And I’m so glad that you helped us win the war too, I mean that took real guts and well it made you honorable.” Katara said slowing at the end, and placing a hand on his where it rested on his knee.

“Oh Katara, I- I love you too.” He said, grabbing her face in his and planting a big warm kiss on her lips.  
When he pulled away she still held onto him, but she looked all dazed and surprised.

“Oh I’m sorry, was it too soon? I didn’t mean to frighten you!” He said sliding away from her.

Katara smoothened out her face and pulled him towards her, “No, it’s just- I never knew you were such a god kisser.” She said pulling him in for another kiss; this one was much longer and more passionate than the last.

Zuko smiled as he pulled away, “You know your dad’s going to kill me and the others will put up a fight? Right?”

“Oh yeah, and that’s exactly why it’ll work, and it’ll help unite our two nations. Plus it’ll show how people with differences can love one another easily.” She said planting a small butterfly kiss on his lips. “And besides, it’s my life and my choice who I marry.” She said with a grin.

He just smiled and let out a small chuckle, “Oh you are so worth it.” He said and planted a kiss on her lips.

And they laid there in each other’s arms until the sun began to rise. They announced it to everyone later that week and got married 1 year later. And are happily married with three children; Aani (Shout out to Mrs. Jennibare on FF.net), Ursula, Banyu and a little baby Kya on the way.

**Author's Note:**

> Reminder: I wrote this way back in 2012. I apologize for the spelling/grammar errors and the simple plots/misinterpretation of the characters. I decided to post the originals instead of reediting them to keep the authenticity of my writing style of the time and show my progress since then.


End file.
